Tongs assembly

ABSTRACT

A tongs assembly comprising a tongs and a hand shield is disclosed. In a preferred embodiment, the tongs include a pair of arms hingedly connected at one end and the shield is attached to the arms and extends radially outward from an optimal fulcrum point on the arms. The shield is preferably round and formed by two thin, rigid shield sections that are individually attached to the arms. Each shield section is positioned on an arm in such a way as to create a fulcrum point on the longitudinal axis of the tongs, so that in the open position, the grasping ends of the tongs pivot downwardly and the hinged or closed end of the tongs pivot upwardly and away from the surface on which the grasping ends of the tongs are resting. The handles of the tongs are thereby kept from directly contacting the food or the utensil.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 60/073,758 filed Feb. 5, 1998.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to implements for handing food,and particularly to tong-type utensils having means for keeping the tonghandles from coming, into direst contact with the food.

There are many kinds of food serving tongs in present day use. Among themost familiar are the simple sheet metal tongs composed of two identicalopposing arms joined at one end by a pin and biased in the open positionby a spring metal member inside the handles. Other well known tongsinclude the scissors type or those that are molded as one continuouspiece of resilient plastic. Serving tongs such as these are often usedat salad bars in restaurants and in serving other types of food inself-service food establishments, as well as for serving food in thehome.

One common problem with most conventional tongs is that the handles veryoften come into direct contact with the food being served. For example,after serving themselves in a buffet serving line, some people place thetongs directly on top of the food or inside the serving bowl or utensil.Even when a user carefully props the tongs upright against the side of asalad bowl, or other serving bowl having curved interior walls, thetongs typically will fall or slide down into the bowl with the food. Thenext user must then retrieve the food-coated tong handles from the bowl,and in doing so usually soils his hands with the food material. Even ifone takes care not to leave the serving tongs in the food container, theonly other option in many circumstances is for the user to place thetongs on a table or counter top, where the handles are still subject topicking up contaminants from that surface, or a table cloth may bestained by food material clinging to the tongs. Another problem withmost tongs is that sometimes the user's hand will accidentally slide toofar down the arms of the tongs or will plunge into the food along withthe grasping ends of the tongs, thereby placing the hand in directcontact with the food. At the very least, the prospect of eating foodthat has been "touched" by the hands of many previous tong-handlers isdistasteful.

Beyond the aesthetic considerations, there are sanitary considerations.There is the distinct possibility that by sharing food that is servedwith conventional tong-type utensils, many human disease organismsincluding cold viruses, hepatitis viruses, E. coli or salmonellabacteria, or dysentery-causing parasites, for example, can betransmitted from one individual to another.

One approach toward isolating the hand of the user from the food beingserved is described by Culbertson in U.S. Pat. No. 4,768,288, whichemploys a U-shaped hand guard or places a separate hand grip on each armof a pair of tongs.

Serving tongs that provide superior protection for both the food and theuser from contamination and from soiling is needed. Such a utensilshould be easy to manufacture and should not be cumbersome to use.

The present invention overcomes the deficiencies of the prior art.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The tong assembly of the present invention generally includes tongshaving a pair of arms, and a shield that extends substantially 360degrees around the arms, when the tongs are closed, and projectsradially outward a sufficient distance from the arms. The shield detersthe user's hand from coming into direct contact with the material beinggrasped with the tongs. In preferred embodiments, the shield isoptimally located at a fulcrum point on the arms. One end of each arm isjoined at a pivot point to the corresponding end of the other arm insuch a manner that the opposite or food grasping ends of the arms aremutually opposed when the tongs are closed, and are spaced apart fromeach other when the tongs are open. In some embodiments of theinvention, the tongs of the assembly is similar to a conventional saladtongs.

The shield of certain embodiments is round and formed by two thin, rigidguard or shield sections that are attached to the arms. The two shieldsections come together at their mutually opposable edges when the tongarms are squeezed closed by the user's grip on the handle portion of thearms.

The shield sections are situated on each arm in such a way as to createa fulcrum point on the longitudinal axis of the tongs, so that thenormally open end of the tongs is always down and the hinged or closedend of the tongs is always held up and away from the surface on whichthe grasping end of the tongs and the edge of the shield are resting.This prevents the upper, or handle, end of the tongs from laying flat onany surface, and also prevents the handle portion of the tongs fromcoming into contact with the food. This protects the food from directexposure to the portions of the tongs that are meant to be handled bythe user.

Preferably, each shield section is semi-circular and together they forman essentially circular shield about the longitudinal axis of the tongswhen the tongs are in the closed position, as shown in the accompanyingdrawings. The shield sections may have a shape other than semicircular,however, as long they are of sufficient width or radius andcircumference to keep the handle end of the tongs from touching the foodor surface, and as long as they adequately prevent the user's hands tocontact the food. They may also be advantageously shaped to facilitatehanging or resting the tong assembly, such as on the rim of a salad bowlor to avoid rolling.

When the user grasps the handle portions and closes the tongs, theopposing ends of the two semi-circular shield sections come together toform an essentially closed circular shield that prevents the user'sfingers from touching the food.

The tongs assembly may also include one or more shield support members,such as a bracket or brace, if necessary. Preferably, the tongs aremetal and the guard sections are plastic; however, the tongs and shieldsections may be made of the same material and formed as a continuousmonolithic structure. In some embodiments, the shield sections aredetachable from the tongs.

In certain embodiments the tongs assembly of the present inventionincludes a single shield, two resilient handle covers, and a resilienthinge end cover. Each handle cover is attached at one end to the hingeend cover, and the other end of one of the handle covers is attached tothe shield member at a point that is adjacent the fulcrum point on thearms of the tongs. The handle covers, the hinge end cover and the shieldare preferably made as a single monolithic structure from an elastomericmaterial. The handle covers may also include means for attachment to thearms of a tongs, such as a resilient rib or a rolled edge.

Also in accordance with the present invention, a separate shield, orhandle guard, is provided that is suitable for attachment to aconventional set of tongs and is easily removable for cleaning andreplacement. The detachable shield is preferably a single circular piecethat is able to stably support the tong handles in a position that iselevated relative to the position of the grasping ends of the tongs whenthe tongs is placed on a surface. Alternatively, the shield may bedivided into two mutually opposable semi-circular pieces. A preferredversion of the detachable handle guard also includes a close-fittingcover for the tongs hinge end and a pair of covers for attachment to thetong handles. At least one of the handle covers is attached to theshield member and includes means for securing the assembly to the tongarms. In some embodiments, the hinge end cover, handle covers and shieldmember are formed from the same material monolithically, to provide asingle structure.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a tongsassembly that overcomes the drawbacks of prior art food serving tongsand that is advantageous for use in the preparation, handling andserving of food or other objects where sanitary conditions should bemaintained.

These and other objects, features and advantages of the presentinvention will become apparent with reference to the followingdescription and drawing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

For a detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention,reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side view of one embodiment of the tongs assembly of thepresent invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view, partially in cross section, of the tongsassembly shown in FIG. 1, showing the tongs in the open position.

FIG. 3 is an end view of the tongs assembly of FIG. 1, viewed from thehinge end with the tongs in the closed position.

FIG. 4 is another perspective view of the tongs assembly of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5A is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the tongsassembly of the present invention.

FIG. 5B is a perspective view of the underside of one of the arms of thetongs assembly shown in FIG. 5A.

FIG. 6A shows a tongs assembly in accordance with the present inventionbeing used with a bowl of food.

FIG. 6B is similar to FIG. 6A showing an alternative stable placement ofthe tongs assembly of the present invention in a bowl of food.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The following examples are offered by way of illustration and are notintended to limit the scope of the invention in any manner.

Referring initially to FIGS. 1-4, an exemplary tong assembly 10 inaccordance with the present invention is shown. Tong assembly 10generally comprises tongs 20 and a protective guard or shield 40. Tongs20 has two arms 22, each including hinge end 26 and grasping end 28,with a handle portion 24 disposed therebetween, as shown in FIGS. 1 and2. Tongs 20 is preferably similar to a conventional metallic or plastictongs with opposable grasping ends 28 and that is resiliently hinged orpivotable at the closed end 26 by means of pivot pin 27, or the like.Tongs 20 is spring-biased by a metal strip (not shown), or by anothersimilar means, to maintain the grasping ends 28 or "jaws" in aninitially open position, as shown in FIG. 2.

The handle portions 24 of arms 22 are attached at hinge end 26. A thinsemi-circular guard or shield section 42 is disposed on each arm 22adjacent fulcrum point 30 and extends outwardly from the longitudinalaxis of arm 22, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. Shield section 42 ispreferably monolithic with tongs 20, and may be additionally supportedby a brace or bracket 48. Shield sections 42 extend radially from arms22 more or less perpendicularly from the longitudinal axis of arms 22 soas to form a flat or slightly curved circular shield 40. Preferably thetongs 20 and shield 40 are made of stainless steel, but other suitablyrigid materials may also be used.

Each shield section 42 is attached by attachment point 46 to arm 22 atfulcrum point 30 on arm 22. The location of fulcrum point 30 along arm22 is dictated by the relationship of the radius of shield 40, to thetotal length of the tongs 20 selected and the desired length that isallocated for the handle portion 24. For any combination of shieldradius and tongs length, fulcrum point 30 is always chosen such thatwhen handle attachment point 46 of shield section 42 is attached to arm22, the outer edge 44 of shield 40 is able to lift and support handleportion 24 and hinge end 26 a sufficient distance above the plane of thetongs (lying in a horizontal position) to keep the handles 24 and end 26out of contact with the food or out of contact with the surface uponwhich the tongs assembly 10 is resting, as illustrated in FIGS. 6A-B.The fulcrum point 30 causes the weight of that portion of the arms 22extending from the fulcrum point 30 to the grasping ends 28 to begreater that the weight of that portion of the arms 22 extending fromthe fulcrum point 30 to the hinge ends 26. Thus, the tongs always pivoton the edge of the shield 40 toward the grasping ends 28, which liftsthe hinge ends 26 away from the food or supporting surface of theutensil when the tongs are laid down by the user. The radius of shield40 must be large enough to keep the user's hand from touching the foodwhile the handles 24 are being gripped or from contacting the outeredges of the shield 40, yet must be small enough to avoid beingcumbersome or obstructive to the user. To minimize visual obtrusiveness,the shield 40 is preferably made of a transparent plastic material.Shield 40 may also include decorative embellishments, advertising orother indicia.

When handles 24 of tongs 20 are squeezed together so that tongs 20 is inthe closed position, arms 22 are mutually opposed, with the straightedges 50, 52 of shield sections 42 coming together. In this way, the twoshield sections 42, together, form an essentially circular shield 40about arms 22, as best shown in FIG. 3. If desired, shield sections 42,instead of being perpendicular to arms 22 and flat, may be cupped orcurved, so as to form a concave upward (toward the hinge end 26) orconcave downward (toward the grasping ends 28) shield 40. In somesituations, it may be advantageous, to have the shield 40 in a bent orconcave downward configuration to facilitate hanging the tongs assembly10 on the side of a salad bowl, for example. Likewise, in othersituations, it may be advantageous to have the concave upwardconfiguration, in order for the shield 40 to also serve as a catch basinadjacent the user's hand, for example.

In an alternative embodiment, similar in appearance to that shown inFIG. 4, shield sections 42 of shield 40 are not monolithic with tongs20, but instead are separate units from the tongs 20 and are securelyattached to tongs 20 at the fulcrum point 30 on each arm 22 by welding,by matingly engaging a receiving slot (not shown) in arm 22, by heatfusion, glue or the like, or by using a combination of these methods.The tongs 20 and shield 40 may be formed from the same or differentmaterials, preferably plastic or metal, depending on the way they willbe used. The material chosen for shield 40 must be sufficiently rigid,however, to allow the outer edges of the shield 40 to support the weightof the tongs 20 in their at-rest position, or suitable reinforcementmust be included to provide sufficient strength to the outer edges ofthe shield 40. Some users may find this embodiment advantageous over thetongs assembly shown in FIG. 4 for ease of manufacturing or otherconsiderations.

The tong assembly shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 may also be varied bysubstituting a shield configuration that is other than round. Forexample, shield 40 may be oblong, square, rectangular or another regularor irregular shape which would also be satisfactory as long as thedistance of the shield's outer edges from the arms 22 is sufficient tokeep the handle portions 24 away from the food, and as long as the sizeand configuration of the shield 40 prevent the user's tong-gripping handfrom directly contacting the food. One of these variations may beadvantageous over that depicted in FIGS. 3 and 4 to discourage therolling of the handle portions 24 of the tongs assembly 10 when it isresting on an uneven surface, or for considerations related to ease ofmanufacturing. Also, one variation or another might be preferred foradvantageous placement of particular advertising indicia or the like.

Additional variations of the tong assembly 10 which are similar to thatshown in FIGS. 1-4 have modified semi-circular, or other shaped shieldmembers that are positioned somewhat offset from each other at thefulcrum point 30 on the tong arms 22 such that one shield section 42overlaps the other slightly when the tongs 20 are closed. In this way amore completely closed circular shield 40 is formed about the tong arms22.

Referring now to FIG. 5A, there is shown an alternative shield 140 inaccordance with the present invention. The handle guard or shield 140 issuitable for attachment to and use with any of a variety ofconventional, commercially available tongs 120. Unlike shield 40 of FIG.4, shield 140 may be formed as a single piece instead of having twoopposable guard members. In this embodiment, a hinge end cover 150, anattached handle cover 152 and an unattached handle cover 158 areconnected to, or monolithic with shield 140. More particularly, theattached handle cover 152 is connected at end 157 to hinge cover 150 andat its other end 156 to shield 140. Unattached handle cover 158 isidentical to attached handle cover 152 except it is connected only atend 164 to hinge cover 150, leaving end 162 not connected to shield 140.Hinge end cover 150 fits snuggly over the pivot or hinge end of avariety of conventional, commercially available tongs 120. Handle covers152, 158 conform about and attach to the handle portion 124 of a pair ofregular tongs 120, such as a conventional metal tongs having,crimped-edge or rolled-under arms (shown in phantom lines in FIG. 5B).Shield 140 also includes an aperture 170, located at the handleconnection point 146 adjacent the tongs fulcrum point 130 (similar tofulcrum point 30). Aperture 170 is of suitable size and shape, forreceiving the arms 122 of the tongs 120 and permits opening and closingof the tongs 120 within the aperture 170. End cover 150 and handlecovers 152, 158 are made of a sufficiently resilient or elastomericmaterial to withstand repeated compression and release of the handleportion 124 of tong arm 122 by the user. Shield 140 must be sufficientlyrigid to retain its shape and the position of aperture 170. The shield140 is easily removed from the tongs 120 for washing and storage, andcan be reattached prior to use.

FIG. 5B shows the underside of a tong arm 122 to which handle cover 158is attached. Handle cover 158 has gripping edges 160 that are formed ofa resilient material and that wrap around and engage the edges of thetong handle portions 124. Alternatively, the gripping edges 160 may havea resilient rib or raised edge (not shown) that can be pressed betweenthe inwardly rolled edges of conventional metal tongs for cooperativelyanchoring to the handles 124. Like handle cover 158, the handle cover152 also has gripping edges (not shown), which are identical to grippingedges 160. Together, handle covers 152, 158 and hinge end cover 150 fitclosely about and securely anchor the shield 140 to a pair ofconventional tongs 120. In addition to, or instead of the grippinglyedges 160 or resilient ribs other attachment methods such as adhesivemay be used to hold the shield 140 securely on the tongs 120.

In a modified version of the shield (not shown), shield 140 is divided(similar in appearance to that shown in FIGS. 3 and 4), omittingaperture 170, and together with hinge end cover 150 and handle covers152 and 158, the shield sections 42 are securely held in place asdescribed above.

When attached to tongs 120, shield 140 permits the user to rest thegrasping ends 128 of the tongs 120 and the outer edge 144 of shield 140on a surface without having the tong handle portions 124 touch thesurface. Shield 140, by extending substantially 360 degrees around thearms 122, when in the closed position, and extending radially outward asufficient distance from the arms 122, also deters the user's hand fromcoming into direct contact with the material being grasped with thetongs 120.

Referring now to FIG. 6A, when the outer edge of the tongs of thepresent invention is placed directly on the food inside a bowl, thehandle portions do not come into contact with the food, and the surfacearea of the utensil that actually touches the food is minimized,compared to conventional tongs placed inside a bowl. Similarly, FIG. 6Billustrates how the shield of the tongs of the present invention may berested on the rim of a serving bowl to (entirely avoid contacting thefood with the shield. A person who is concerned about maintainingsanitary food handling conditions can readily appreciate the advantagesof the tongs of the present invention over conventional servingutensils. The tongs assembly, having a shield with large, flat surfaceareas prominently situated on the tongs, also lends itself to theadvantageous placement of advertising or other indicia.

All patents or publications mentioned in this specification areindicative of th level of skill of those of knowledge in the art towhich the invention pertains. All patents and publications referred toin this application are incorporated herein by reference to the sameextent as if each was specifically indicated as being incorporated byreference and to the extent that they provide materials and methods notspecifically shown.

While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown anddescribed, modifications thereof can be made by one skilled in the artwithout departing from the spirit and teachings of the invention. Theembodiment described herein is exemplary only, and is not limiting. Manyvariations and modifications of the invention and apparatus disclosedherein are possible and are within the scope of the invention.Accordingly, the scope of protection is not limited by the descriptionset out above, but is only limited by the claims which follow, thatscope including all equivalents of the subject matter of the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A tongs assembly comprising:first and second armshaving first and second ends, and a handle portion disposed between saidfirst and second ends, said first ends being pivotably joined togetherand biased apart toward an open position, and said second ends beingmutually opposed when said arms are in a closed position; and a shieldfixedly attached to at least one of said arms, said shield extendingsubstantially 360 degrees around said arms when said arms are in saidclosed position, said shield disposed substantially perpendicular to thelongitudinal axis of said arms, and extending outward a distance fromsaid arms such that upon resting said tongs assembly on a substantiallyflat surface said second ends contact said surface, a portion of saidshield contacts said surface, and said first ends are away from saidsurface.
 2. The tongs assembly of claim 1 wherein said shield is made ofplastic.
 3. The tongs assembly of claim 1 wherein said shield has aconfiguration chosen from the group consisting of round, oblong, square,rectangular and other regular or irregular configurations withdimensions sufficient to maintain said first ends away from said surfaceupon resting said tongs assembly on a substantially flat surface.
 4. Thetongs assembly of claim 1 wherein said shield is substantially planar.5. The tongs assembly of claim 1 wherein said shield is concave downwardtoward said second ends.
 6. A tongs assembly comprising:first and secondarms having first and second ends, and a handle portion disposed betweensaid first and second ends, said first ends being pivotably joinedtogether and biased apart toward an open position, and said second endsbeing mutually opposed when said arms are in a closed position; and asubstantially planar shield fixedly attached to at least one of saidarms adjacent a fulcrum point on said arm, said shield extendingsubstantially 360 degrees around said arms when said arms are in saidclosed position, said shield disposed substantially perpendicular to thelongitudinal axis of said arms, and extending outward a distance fromsaid arms such that upon resting said tongs assembly on a substantiallyflat surface said second ends contact said surface, a portion of saidshield contacts said surface, and a portion of said arms from saidfulcrum point to said first ends are away from said surface.
 7. Thetongs assembly of claim 6 wherein said shield comprises at least twoseparate sections.
 8. The tongs assembly of claim 7 wherein said shieldcomprises first and second sections with said first section beingseparate from said second section and attached to said first armadjacent said fulcrum point and said second section being attached tosaid second arm adjacent said fulcrum point, each said section having amutually opposable edge.
 9. The tongs assembly of claim 8 wherein saidsections and arms are monolithic.
 10. The tongs assembly of claim 8wherein said sections are detachable from said arms.
 11. The tongsassembly of claim 8 wherein said sections are substantiallysemi-circular and engage in said closed position to form a substantiallycircular shield about said arms.
 12. The tongs assembly of claim 7wherein said tongs assembly includes at least one shield support memberfixedly attached to said shield and an arm.
 13. The tongs assembly ofclaim 6 wherein said shield is concave upward toward said first ends.14. A shield for a tongs with arms, handles and grasping ends, saidshield comprising:a body adapted for attachment to a tongs, said bodyhaving at least one generally planar portion which extends outward froma point on an arm of said tongs perpendicularly to the longitudinal axisof said arm when said shield is attached to said tongs; an attachmentportion extending from each said at least one planar portion and adaptedfor fixed attachment to an arm of the tongs such that when said shieldis attached to the tongs and such combination is placed on asubstantially flat surface, a part of said at least one planar portioncontacts said surface, a grasping end contacts said surface and saidhandles are away from said surface.
 15. The shield of claim 14 whereinsaid at least one generally planar portion is circular.
 16. The shieldof claim 14 wherein said at least one generally planar portion includestwo mutually opposable semi-circular members.
 17. The shield of claim 14wherein said planar portion and attachment portion are monolithic. 18.The tongs assembly of claim 1 wherein said shield is one piece andincludes an aperture adjacent said fulcrum point through which said armsextend.
 19. The tongs assembly of claim 18 wherein said shield furtherincludes resilient handle covers disposed on said arms and a resilienthinge end cover disposed on said hinge end.
 20. The tongs assembly ofclaim 19 wherein said handle covers includes a resilient rib or a rollededge.
 21. The shield of claim 14 wherein said shield is one piececomprising a single planar portion.
 22. The shield of claim 21 whereinsaid shield further comprises at least one handle cover.
 23. The shieldof claim 21 wherein said shield further comprises a hinge end cover.